County, sheriff spar over DNC refund

Providing deputies to work the Democratic National Convention last year allowed the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office to turn a pretty profit.

Michael Barrett

Providing deputies to work the Democratic National Convention last year allowed the Gaston County Sheriff’s Office to turn a pretty profit.

Sheriff Alan Cloninger hoped to spend the $21,549 surplus as he saw fit, on yet-to-be-determined communications equipment and other supplies. But Gaston County commissioners put the brakes on that Thursday after an awkward, back-and-forth debate with the sheriff about who should control the extra cash.

Commissioners denied Cloninger’s request by voting unanimously to put the excess money back in their savings account, and to decide how to spend it later.

“This is just how we do it,” said Commissioner Tom Keigher.

The disagreement put a spotlight on the unique relationship between the all-Republican commission and Cloninger, who is Gaston’s only elected Democrat on the county or state level.

Though voters put the sheriff in office, he still depends on county commissioners for the vast majority of his $18.5 million annual budget.

A little extra

Law enforcement agencies across the region sent officers to help out from Sept. 1-7 when the DNC was held in Charlotte. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has been reimbursing many of them recently.

The local sheriff’s office sent 27 deputies and supervisors who helped out in various ways. Twenty of them made patrols on mobile field force squads, working as riot police to keep protestors at bay as needed, said Sheriff’s Office Capt. Garry Williams. Three worked security as part of the Gastonia Regional SWAT Team, and three others manned vans and helped to transport people who were arrested, he said.

Williams oversaw nighttime traffic control in a zone downtown.

Deputies earned the same rate as a Charlotte police officer who has been employed 10 years. Williams received the higher pay of a Charlotte police captain for his hours, Cloninger said.

The straight time and overtime pay cost the sheriff’s office $78,824, for which it was reimbursed. But Charlotte police actually cut a check for $100,373, after factoring in the use of sheriff’s office vehicles and other costs. High reimbursement rates essentially produced a $21,549 profit for Cloninger’s agency.

The sheriff’s office was also allowed to keep 20 sets of “turtle shell” riot gear which were used by the deputies during the DNC. The protective suits are worth up to $1,200 each, or as much as $24,000 in all, Cloninger said.

Where should it go?

Cloninger on Thursday asked commissioners to put the $21,549 surplus into a special account, which he could use at his discretion.

It would replace communications equipment, such as handheld and car radios, patrol car computers or batteries, Cloninger said. It might also go toward general law enforcement needs, such as gun holsters or anything “extra,” he said.

“In my (overall) budget, I have a law enforcement supply budget. There are discretionary things we do from time to time,” Cloninger told commissioners. “I don’t come before you every time and ask how many coats and ties and what color I should buy.”

Keigher said leaving the DNC refund up to Cloninger’s judgment would go against protocol. Such windfalls of unexpected money are supposed to go into the county’s savings account, and then be budgeted by the commission, Keigher said.

County Manager Jan Winters agreed with that assessment. Other commissioners suggested that Cloninger produce an itemized list of where the money would go.

Cloninger said there’s not always money in his budget for extra purchases. He told commissioners he easily could’ve reported that the $100,373 was a full reimbursement for salaries and overtime, then kept the $21,549 for communications and other needs.

“But I’m trying to do it the proper way and the right way,” he said. “There’s a little bit of an element of trust which I’m not feeling right now, but that’s all right.”

As Keigher continued to explain his position, Cloninger mumbled something. Keigher took offense to being interrupted.

“I was talking, please,” he said, which prompted an apology from the sheriff.

Cloninger later relented. On Monday, he said he just wanted consideration from commissioners. He said he brings in more than $2 million from fees, grants and other revenue each year — such as by providing jail space for federal inmates — that helps to support his agency.

“As far as sheriff’s office goes, y’all control my budget,” he told commissioners at the end of Thursday’s discussion. “So whatever you decide is what you decide.”

You can reach Michael Barrett at 704-869-1826 or twitter.com/GazetteMike.